Metabolism resistant fenfluramine analogs and methods of using the same

ABSTRACT

Metabolism-resistant fenfluramine analogs are provided. The subject fenfluramine analogs find use in the treatment of a variety of diseases. For example, methods of treating epilepsy by administering a fenfluramine analog to a subject in need thereof are provided. Also provided are methods of suppressing appetite in a subject in need thereof. Pharmaceutical compositions for use in practicing the subject methods are also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119 (e), this application claims the benefit ofpriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/271,168,filed Dec. 22, 2015, the disclosure of which application is herebyincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

FIELD

This invention relates generally to the field of compounds structurallyrelated to the amphetamine drug fenfluramine and their use in thetreatment of neurological related diseases.

INTRODUCTION

Fenfluramine is an amphetamine drug that was once widely prescribed asan appetite suppressant to treat obesity. Fenfluramine is devoid of thepsychomotor stimulant and abuse potential of D-amphetamine and interactswith the 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin, 5-HT) transporters to release5-HT from neurons. Fenfluramine has been investigated for anticonvulsiveactivity in the treatment of Dravet Syndrome, or severe myoclonicepilepsy in infancy, a rare and malignant epileptic syndrome. This typeof epilepsy has an early onset in previously healthy children.

Anorectic treatment with fenfluramine has been associated with thedevelopment of cardiac valvulopathy and pulmonary hypertension,including the condition cardiac fibrosis which led to the withdrawal offenfluramine from world-wide markets. Interaction of fenfluramine'smajor metabolite norfenfluramine with the 5-HT2B receptor is associatedwith heart valve hypertrophy. In the treatment of epilepsy, the knowncardiovascular risks of fenfluramine are weighed against beneficialanticonvulsive activity.

SUMMARY

Metabolism-resistant fenfluramine analogs are provided. The subjectfenfluramine analogs find use in the treatment of a variety of diseases.For example, methods of treating epilepsy by administering afenfluramine analog to a subject in need thereof are provided. Alsoprovided are methods of suppressing appetite in a subject in needthereof. Pharmaceutical compositions for use in practicing the subjectmethods are also provided.

These and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention willbecome apparent to those persons skilled in the art upon reading thedetails of the metabolism-resistant fenfluramine analogs and methods ofusing the same as more fully described below.

DEFINITIONS

As used herein, the term “subject” refers to a mammal. Exemplary mammalsinclude, but are not limited to, humans, domestic animals (e.g., a dog,cat, or the like), farm animals (e.g., a cow, a sheep, a pig, a horse,or the like) or laboratory animals (e.g., a monkey, a rat, a mouse, arabbit, a guinea pig, or the like). In certain embodiments, the subjectis human. “Patient” refers to human and non-human subjects, especiallymammalian subjects.

As used herein, the terms “treatment,” “treating,” and the like, referto obtaining a desired pharmacologic and/or physiologic effect. Theeffect may be prophylactic in terms of completely or partiallypreventing a disease or symptom thereof and/or may be therapeutic interms of a partial or complete cure for a disease and/or adverse effectattributable to the disease. As used herein, the terms “treating,”“treatment,” “therapeutic,” or “therapy” do not necessarily mean totalcure or abolition of the disease or condition. Any alleviation of anyundesired signs or symptoms of a disease or condition, to any extent canbe considered treatment and/or therapy. Furthermore, treatment mayinclude acts that may worsen the patient's overall feeling of well-beingor appearance. “Treatment,” as used herein, covers any treatment of adisease in a mammal, particularly in a human, and includes: (a)preventing the disease from occurring in a subject which may bepredisposed to the disease but has not yet been diagnosed as having it;(b) inhibiting the disease, i.e., arresting its development; and (c)relieving the disease, i.e., causing regression of the disease.

As used herein, the term pKa refers to the negative logarithm (p) of theacid dissociation constant (Ka) of an acid, and is equal to the pH valueat which equal concentrations of the acid and its conjugate base formare present in solution.

“Alkyl” refers to monovalent saturated aliphatic hydrocarbyl groupshaving from 1 to 10 carbon atoms and such as 1 to 6 carbon atoms, or 1to 5, or 1 to 4, or 1 to 3 carbon atoms. This term includes, by way ofexample, linear and branched hydrocarbyl groups such as methyl (CH₃—),ethyl (CH₃CH₂—), n-propyl (CH₃CH₂CH₂—), isopropyl ((CH₃)₂CH—), n-butyl(CH₃CH₂CH₂CH₂—), isobutyl ((CH₃)₂CHCH₂—), sec-butyl ((CH₃)(CH₃CH₂)CH—),t-butyl ((CH₃)₃C—), n-pentyl (CH₃CH₂CH₂CH₂CH₂—), and neopentyl((CH₃)₃CCH₂—).

The term “substituted alkyl” refers to an alkyl group as defined hereinwherein one or more carbon atoms in the alkyl chain have been optionallyreplaced with a heteroatom such as —O—, —N—, —S—, —S(O)_(n)— (where n is0 to 2), —NR— (where R is hydrogen or alkyl) and having from 1 to 5substituents selected from the group consisting of alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, cycloalkyl, substituted cycloalkyl, cycloalkenyl, substitutedcycloalkenyl, acyl, acylamino, acyloxy, amino, aminoacyl, aminoacyloxy,oxyaminoacyl, azido, cyano, halogen, hydroxyl, oxo, thioketo, carboxyl,carboxylalkyl, thioaryloxy, thioheteroaryloxy, thioheterocyclooxy,thiol, thioalkoxy, substituted thioalkoxy, aryl, aryloxy, heteroaryl,heteroaryloxy, heterocyclyl, heterocyclooxy, hydroxyamino, alkoxyamino,nitro, —SO-alkyl, —SO-aryl, —SO-heteroaryl, —SO₂-alkyl, —SO₂-aryl,—SO₂-heteroaryl, and —NR^(a)R^(b), wherein R′ and R″ may be the same ordifferent and are chosen from hydrogen, optionally substituted alkyl,cycloalkyl, alkenyl, cycloalkenyl, alkynyl, aryl, heteroaryl andheterocyclic.

“Acyl” refers to the groups H—C(O)—, alkyl-C(O)—, substitutedalkyl-C(O)—, alkenyl-C(O)—, substituted alkenyl-C(O)—, alkynyl-C(O)—,substituted alkynyl-C(O)—, cycloalkyl-C(O)—, substitutedcycloalkyl-C(O)—, cycloalkenyl-C(O)—, substituted cycloalkenyl-C(O)—,aryl-C(O)—, substituted aryl-C(O)—, heteroaryl-C(O)—, substitutedheteroaryl-C(O)—, heterocyclyl-C(O)—, and substitutedheterocyclyl-C(O)—, wherein alkyl, substituted alkyl, alkenyl,substituted alkenyl, alkynyl, substituted alkynyl, cycloalkyl,substituted cycloalkyl, cycloalkenyl, substituted cycloalkenyl, aryl,substituted aryl, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl, heterocyclic, andsubstituted heterocyclic are as defined herein. For example, acylincludes the “acetyl” group CH₃C(O)—

The term “acyloxy” refers to the groups alkyl-C(O)O—, substitutedalkyl-C(O)O—, cycloalkyl-C(O)O—, substituted cycloalkyl-C(O)O—,aryl-C(O)O—, heteroaryl-C(O)O—, and heterocyclyl-C(O)O— wherein alkyl,substituted alkyl, cycloalkyl, substituted cycloalkyl, aryl, heteroaryl,and heterocyclyl are as defined herein.

“Aryl” or “Ar” refers to a monovalent aromatic carbocyclic group of from6 to 18 carbon atoms having a single ring (such as is present in aphenyl group) or a ring system having multiple condensed rings (examplesof such aromatic ring systems include naphthyl, anthryl and indanyl)which condensed rings may or may not be aromatic, provided that thepoint of attachment is through an atom of an aromatic ring. This termincludes, by way of example, phenyl and naphthyl. Unless otherwiseconstrained by the definition for the aryl substituent, such aryl groupscan optionally be substituted with from 1 to 5 substituents, or from 1to 3 substituents, selected from acyloxy, hydroxy, thiol, acyl, alkyl,alkoxy, alkenyl, alkynyl, cycloalkyl, cycloalkenyl, substituted alkyl,substituted alkoxy, substituted alkenyl, substituted alkynyl,substituted cycloalkyl, substituted cycloalkenyl, amino, substitutedamino, aminoacyl, acylamino, alkaryl, aryl, aryloxy, azido, carboxyl,carboxylalkyl, cyano, halogen, nitro, heteroaryl, heteroaryloxy,heterocyclyl, heterocyclooxy, aminoacyloxy, oxyacylamino, thioalkoxy,substituted thioalkoxy, thioaryloxy, thioheteroaryloxy, —SO-alkyl,—SO-substituted alkyl, —SO-aryl, —SO-heteroaryl, —SO₂-alkyl,—SO₂-substituted alkyl, —SO₂-aryl, —SO₂-heteroaryl and trihalomethyl.

“Heteroaryl” refers to an aromatic group of from 1 to 15 carbon atoms,such as from 1 to 10 carbon atoms and 1 to 10 heteroatoms selected fromthe group consisting of oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur within the ring.Such heteroaryl groups can have a single ring (such as, pyridinyl,imidazolyl or furyl) or multiple condensed rings in a ring system (forexample as in groups such as, indolizinyl, quinolinyl, benzofuran,benzimidazolyl or benzothienyl), wherein at least one ring within thering system is aromatic and at least one ring within the ring system isaromatic, provided that the point of attachment is through an atom of anaromatic ring. In certain embodiments, the nitrogen and/or sulfur ringatom(s) of the heteroaryl group are optionally oxidized to provide forthe N-oxide (N→O), sulfinyl, or sulfonyl moieties. This term includes,by way of example, pyridinyl, pyrrolyl, indolyl, thiophenyl, andfuranyl. Unless otherwise constrained by the definition for theheteroaryl substituent, such heteroaryl groups can be optionallysubstituted with 1 to 5 substituents, or from 1 to 3 substituents,selected from acyloxy, hydroxy, thiol, acyl, alkyl, alkoxy, alkenyl,alkynyl, cycloalkyl, cycloalkenyl, substituted alkyl, substitutedalkoxy, substituted alkenyl, substituted alkynyl, substitutedcycloalkyl, substituted cycloalkenyl, amino, substituted amino,aminoacyl, acylamino, alkaryl, aryl, aryloxy, azido, carboxyl,carboxylalkyl, cyano, halogen, nitro, heteroaryl, heteroaryloxy,heterocyclyl, heterocyclooxy, aminoacyloxy, oxyacylamino, thioalkoxy,substituted thioalkoxy, thioaryloxy, thioheteroaryloxy, —SO— alkyl,—SO-substituted alkyl, —SO-aryl, —SO-heteroaryl, —SO₂-alkyl,—SO₂-substituted alkyl, —SO₂-aryl and —SO₂-heteroaryl, andtrihalomethyl.

“Heterocycle,” “heterocyclic,” “heterocycloalkyl,” and “heterocyclyl”refer to a saturated or unsaturated group having a single ring ormultiple condensed rings, including fused bridged and spiro ringsystems, and having from 3 to 20 ring atoms, including 1 to 10 heteroatoms. These ring atoms are selected from the group consisting ofnitrogen, sulfur, or oxygen, wherein, in fused ring systems, one or moreof the rings can be cycloalkyl, aryl, or heteroaryl, provided that thepoint of attachment is through the non-aromatic ring. In certainembodiments, the nitrogen and/or sulfur atom(s) of the heterocyclicgroup are optionally oxidized to provide for the N-oxide, —S(O)—, or—SO₂-moieties.

Examples of heterocycles and heteroaryls include, but are not limitedto, azetidine, pyrrole, imidazole, pyrazole, pyridine, pyrazine,pyrimidine, pyridazine, indolizine, isoindole, indole, dihydroindole,indazole, purine, quinolizine, isoquinoline, quinoline, phthalazine,naphthylpyridine, quinoxaline, quinazoline, cinnoline, pteridine,carbazole, carboline, phenanthridine, acridine, phenanthroline,isothiazole, phenazine, isoxazole, phenoxazine, phenothiazine,imidazolidine, imidazoline, piperidine, piperazine, indoline,phthalimide, 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline,4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzo[b]thiophene, thiazole, thiazolidine, thiophene,benzo[b]thiophene, morpholinyl, thiomorpholinyl (also referred to asthiamorpholinyl), 1,1-dioxothiomorpholinyl, piperidinyl, pyrrolidine,tetrahydrofuranyl, and the like.

In addition to the disclosure herein, the term “substituted,” when usedto modify a specified group or radical, can also mean that one or morehydrogen atoms of the specified group or radical are each, independentlyof one another, replaced with the same or different substituent groupsas defined below.

In addition to the groups disclosed with respect to the individual termsherein, substituent groups for substituting for one or more hydrogens(any two hydrogens on a single carbon can be replaced with ═O, ═NR⁷⁰,═N—OR⁷⁰, ═N₂ or ═S) on saturated carbon atoms in the specified group orradical are, unless otherwise specified, —R⁶⁰, halo, ═O, —OR⁷⁰, —SR⁷⁰,—NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, trihalomethyl, —CN, —OCN, —SCN, —NO, —NO₂, ═N₂, —N₃, —SO₂R⁷⁰,—SO₂O⁻M⁺, —SO₂OR⁷⁰, —OSO₂R⁷⁰, —OSO₂O⁻M⁺, —OSO₂OR⁷⁰, —P(O)(O⁻)₂(M⁺)₂,—P(O)(OR⁷⁰)O⁻M⁺, —P(O)(OR⁷⁰)₂, —C(O)R⁷⁰, —C(S)R⁷⁰, —C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰,—C(O)O⁻M⁺, —C(O)OR⁷⁰, —C(S)OR⁷⁰, —C(O)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰,—OC(O)R⁷⁰, —OC(S)R⁷⁰, —OC(O)O⁻M⁺, —OC(O)OR⁷⁰, —OC(S)OR⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(O)R⁷⁰,—NR⁷⁰C(S)R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰CO₂ ⁻M⁺, —NR⁷⁰CO₂R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(S)OR⁷⁰,—NR⁷⁰C(O)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰ and —NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, where R⁶⁰ isselected from the group consisting of optionally substituted alkyl,cycloalkyl, heteroalkyl, heterocycloalkylalkyl, cycloalkylalkyl, aryl,arylalkyl, heteroaryl and heteroarylalkyl, each R⁷⁰ is independentlyhydrogen or R⁶⁰; each R⁸⁰ is independently R⁷⁰ or alternatively, twoR⁸⁰'s, taken together with the nitrogen atom to which they are bonded,form a 5-, 6- or 7-membered heterocycloalkyl which may optionallyinclude from 1 to 4 of the same or different additional heteroatomsselected from the group consisting of O, N and S, of which N may have —Hor C₁-C₃ alkyl substitution; and each M⁺ is a counter ion with a netsingle positive charge. Each M⁺ may independently be, for example, analkali ion, such as K⁺, Na⁺, Li⁺; an ammonium ion, such as ⁺N(R⁶⁰)₄; oran alkaline earth ion, such as [Ca²⁺]_(0.5), [Mg²⁺]_(0.5), or[Ba²⁺]_(0.5) (“subscript 0.5 means that one of the counter ions for suchdivalent alkali earth ions can be an ionized form of a compound of theinvention and the other a typical counter ion such as chloride, or twoionized compounds disclosed herein can serve as counter ions for suchdivalent alkali earth ions, or a doubly ionized compound of theinvention can serve as the counter ion for such divalent alkali earthions). As specific examples, —NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰ is meant to include —NH₂,—NH-alkyl, N-pyrrolidinyl, N-piperazinyl, 4N-methyl-piperazin-1-yl andN-morpholinyl.

In addition to the disclosure herein, substituent groups for hydrogenson unsaturated carbon atoms in “substituted” alkene, alkyne, aryl andheteroaryl groups are, unless otherwise specified, —R⁶⁰, halo, —O⁻M⁺,—OR⁷⁰, —SR⁷⁰, —S⁻M⁺, —NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, trihalomethyl, —CF₃, —CN, —OCN, —SCN,—NO, —NO₂, —N₃, —SO₂R⁷⁰, —SO₃ ⁻M⁺, —SO₃R⁷⁰, —OSO₂R⁷⁰, —OSO₃ ⁻M⁺,—OSO₃R⁷⁰, —PO₃ ⁻²(M⁺)₂, —P(O)(OR⁷⁰)O⁻M⁺, —P(O)(OR⁷⁰)₂, —C(O)R⁷⁰,—C(S)R⁷⁰, —C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰, —CO₂ ⁻M⁺, —CO₂R⁷⁰, —C(S)OR⁷⁰, —C(O)NR⁸⁰R₈₀,—C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —OC(O)R⁷⁰, —OC(S)R⁷⁰, —OCO₂ ⁻M⁺, —OCO₂R⁷⁰, —OC(S)OR⁷⁰,—NR⁷⁰C(O)R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(S)R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰CO₂ ⁻M⁺, —NR⁷⁰CO₂R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(S)OR⁷⁰,—NR⁷⁰C(O)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰ and —NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, where R⁶⁰,R⁷⁰, R⁸⁰ and M⁺ are as previously defined, provided that in case ofsubstituted alkene or alkyne, the substituents are not —O⁻M⁺, —OR⁷⁰,—SR⁷⁰, or —S⁻M⁺.

In addition to the groups disclosed with respect to the individual termsherein, substituent groups for hydrogens on nitrogen atoms in“substituted” heteroalkyl and cycloheteroalkyl groups are, unlessotherwise specified, —R⁶⁰, —O⁻M⁺, —OR⁷⁰, —SR⁷⁰, —S⁻M⁺, —NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰,trihalomethyl, —CF₃, —CN, —NO, —NO₂, —S(O)₂R⁷⁰, —S(O)₂O⁻M⁺, —S(O)₂OR⁷⁰,—OS(O)₂R⁷⁰, —OS(O)₂O⁻M⁺, —OS(O)₂OR⁷⁰, —P(O)(O⁻)₂(M⁺)₂, —P(O)(OR⁷⁰)O⁻M⁺,—P(O)(OR⁷⁰)(OR⁷⁰), —C(O)R⁷⁰, —C(S)R⁷⁰, —C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰, —C(O)OR⁷⁰,—C(S)OR⁷⁰, —C(O)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —OC(O)R⁷⁰, —OC(S)R⁷⁰,—OC(O)OR⁷⁰, —OC(S)OR⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(O)R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(S)R⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(O)OR⁷⁰,—NR⁷⁰C(S)OR⁷⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(O)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, —NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)R⁷⁰ and—NR⁷⁰C(NR⁷⁰)NR⁸⁰R⁸⁰, where R⁶⁰, R⁷⁰, R⁸⁰ and M⁺ are as previouslydefined.

In addition to the disclosure herein, in a certain embodiment, a groupthat is substituted has 1, 2, 3, or 4 substituents, 1, 2, or 3substituents, 1 or 2 substituents, or 1 substituent.

It is understood that in all substituted groups defined above, polymersarrived at by defining substituents with further substituents tothemselves (e.g., substituted aryl having a substituted aryl group as asubstituent which is itself substituted with a substituted aryl group,which is further substituted by a substituted aryl group, etc.) are notintended for inclusion herein. In such cases, the maximum number of suchsubstitutions is three. For example, serial substitutions of substitutedaryl groups specifically contemplated herein are limited to substitutedaryl-(substituted aryl)-substituted aryl.

Unless indicated otherwise, the nomenclature of substituents that arenot explicitly defined herein are arrived at by naming the terminalportion of the functionality followed by the adjacent functionalitytoward the point of attachment. For example, the substituent“arylalkyloxycarbonyl” refers to the group (aryl)-(alkyl)-O—C(O)—.

As to any of the groups disclosed herein which contain one or moresubstituents, it is understood, of course, that such groups do notcontain any substitution or substitution patterns which are stericallyimpractical and/or synthetically non-feasible. In addition, the subjectcompounds include all stereochemical isomers arising from thesubstitution of these compounds.

The term “pharmaceutically acceptable salt” means a salt which isacceptable for administration to a patient, such as a mammal (salts withcounterions having acceptable mammalian safety for a given dosageregime). Such salts can be derived from pharmaceutically acceptableinorganic or organic bases and from pharmaceutically acceptableinorganic or organic acids. “Pharmaceutically acceptable salt” refers topharmaceutically acceptable salts of a compound, which salts are derivedfrom a variety of organic and inorganic counter ions well known in theart and include, by way of example only, sodium, potassium, calcium,magnesium, ammonium, tetraalkylammonium, and the like; and when themolecule contains a basic functionality, salts of organic or inorganicacids, such as hydrochloride, hydrobromide, formate, tartrate, besylate,mesylate, acetate, maleate, oxalate, and the like.

The term “salt thereof” means a compound formed when a proton of an acidis replaced by a cation, such as a metal cation or an organic cation andthe like. Where applicable, the salt is a pharmaceutically acceptablesalt, although this is not required for salts of intermediate compoundsthat are not intended for administration to a patient. By way ofexample, salts of the present compounds include those wherein thecompound is protonated by an inorganic or organic acid to form a cation,with the conjugate base of the inorganic or organic acid as the anioniccomponent of the salt.

“Solvate” refers to a complex formed by combination of solvent moleculeswith molecules or ions of the solute. The solvent can be an organiccompound, an inorganic compound, or a mixture of both. Some examples ofsolvents include, but are not limited to, methanol,N,N-dimethylformamide, tetrahydrofuran, dimethylsulfoxide, and water.When the solvent is water, the solvate formed is a hydrate.

“Stereoisomer” and “stereoisomers” refer to compounds that have sameatomic connectivity but different atomic arrangement in space.Stereoisomers include cis-trans isomers, E and Z isomers, enantiomers,and diastereomers.

“Tautomer” refers to alternate forms of a molecule that differ only inelectronic bonding of atoms and/or in the position of a proton, such asenol-keto and imine-enamine tautomers, or the tautomeric forms ofheteroaryl groups containing a —N═C(H)—NH— ring atom arrangement, suchas pyrazoles, imidazoles, benzimidazoles, triazoles, and tetrazoles. Aperson of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that othertautomeric ring atom arrangements are possible.

It will be appreciated that the term “or a salt or solvate orstereoisomer thereof” is intended to include all permutations of salts,solvates and stereoisomers, such as a solvate of a pharmaceuticallyacceptable salt of a stereoisomer of subject compound.

“Pharmaceutically effective amount” and “therapeutically effectiveamount” refer to an amount of a compound sufficient to treat a specifieddisorder or disease or one or more of its symptoms and/or to prevent theoccurrence of the disease or disorder. In reference to tumorigenicproliferative disorders, a pharmaceutically or therapeutically effectiveamount comprises an amount sufficient to, among other things, cause thetumor to shrink or decrease the growth rate of the tumor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before the present compounds and methods are described, it is to beunderstood that this invention is not limited to particular compoundsand methods described, as such may, of course, vary. It is also to beunderstood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose ofdescribing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to belimiting, since the scope of the present invention will be limited onlyby the appended claims.

Where a range of values is provided, it is understood that eachintervening value, to the tenth of the unit of the lower limit unlessthe context clearly dictates otherwise, between the upper and lowerlimits of that range is also specifically disclosed. Each smaller rangebetween any stated value or intervening value in a stated range and anyother stated or intervening value in that stated range is encompassedwithin the invention. The upper and lower limits of these smaller rangesmay independently be included or excluded in the range, and each rangewhere either, neither or both limits are included in the smaller rangesis also encompassed within the invention, subject to any specificallyexcluded limit in the stated range. Where the stated range includes oneor both of the limits, ranges excluding either or both of those includedlimits are also included in the invention.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art to which this invention belongs. Although any methods andmaterials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used inthe practice or testing of the present invention, some potential andpreferred methods and materials are now described. All publicationsmentioned herein are incorporated herein by reference to disclose anddescribe the methods and/or materials in connection with which thepublications are cited. It is understood that the present disclosuresupercedes any disclosure of an incorporated publication to the extentthere is a contradiction.

It must be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, thesingular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural referents unless thecontext clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “acompound” includes a plurality of such compounds and reference to “themethod” includes reference to one or more methods and equivalentsthereof known to those skilled in the art, and so forth.

The publications discussed herein are provided solely for theirdisclosure prior to the filing date of the present application. Nothingherein is to be construed as an admission that the present invention isnot entitled to antedate such publication by virtue of prior invention.Further, the dates of publication provided may be different from theactual publication dates which may need to be independently confirmed.

Metabolism-Resistant Fenfluramine Analogs

The present disclosure is related to structural and/or functionalanalogs of fenfluramine that are resistant to systemic metabolism. Asused herein, the term “fenfluramine analog” refers to a structuraland/or functional analog of fenfluramine. Functional analogs offenfluramine are not necessarily structural analogs. Unless explicitlystated, as used herein a fenfluramine analog includes both functionaland structural analogs. In some cases, the subject fenfluramine analogsare resistant to metabolism to de-ethylated norfenfluramine analogs invivo.

Fenfluramine is an effective appetite suppressant drug that waswithdrawn from the drug market because of increased incidents of heartdisease. Fenfluramine is metabolized in vivo into norfenfluramine. Suchmetabolism includes cleavage of an N-ethyl group to producenorfenfluramine as shown below.

De-ethylated norfenfluramine metabolite can have undesirable biologicalactivities that cause side effects such as increased pulmonaryhypertension and aortic valvular disease.

The present disclosure provides compounds that are stabilized againstsuch undesirable metabolism. As used herein, the term“metabolism-resistant” refers to a stability of a fenfluramine againstany of the metabolic pathways of fenfluramine that reduces the intendedpharmacologic effect of the compound. One metabolic pathway of interestagainst which the subject compounds can resistant is the deethylationthat can occur via P450 enzyme(s) in the liver. In some cases, thefenfluramine analog is referred to as being metabolically stable.

Metabolism into Norfenfluramine

Fenfluramine is metabolized in vivo into norfenfluramine by metabolizingenzymes such as cytochrome P450 enzymes in the liver. The enzymes inhuman liver that convert fenfluramine to norfenfluramine include CYP1A2,CYP2B6, and CYP2D6; CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and CYP3A4 also play a role.

Fenfluramine Analogs

Aspects of the present disclosure include analogs of fenfluramine thatare resistant to N-dealkylation, e.g., via action of metabolizingenzymes (e.g., as described herein). In some embodiments, thefenfluramine analogs are resistant to cytochrome P450 enzymes. Incertain cases, the fenfluramine analogs are resistant to a P450 enzymeselected from CYP2D6, CYP2C19, CYP1A2, CYP2B6, CYP3A4 and CYP2C9. Incertain cases, the fenfluramine analogs are resistant to a P450 enzymeselected from CYP1A2, CYP2B6 and CYP2D6. In some instances, the subjectfenfluramine analogs include a secondary, tertiary or quaternary aminogroup that is stabilized against de-alkylation to a primary amine invivo.

In some cases, the analogs are fluorinated compounds, e.g., analogs offenfluramine that include one or more fluorine substituents. In someinstances, the analogs include fluorine substituents at position(s)adjacent to the amine nitrogen of fenfluramine. By “adjacent to” ismeant substitution at a carbon atom position that is located alpha, betaor gamma to the amine nitrogen. In some embodiments, the fenfluramineanalog further includes one or more additional non-fluorine substituentswhich impart upon the compound resistance to cytochrome P450 enzymes. Incertain cases, the fenfluramine analogs further includes one or moreadditional non-fluorine substituents which impart upon the compoundresistance to a P450 enzyme selected from CYP2D6, CYP2C19, CYP1A2,CYP2B6 CYP3A4 and CYP2C9. In certain cases, the fenfluramine analogsfurther includes one or more additional non-fluorine substituents whichimpart upon the compound resistance to a P450 enzyme selected fromCYP1A2, CYP2B6 and CYP2D6. In certain instances, the analog furtherincludes one or more additional non-fluorine substituents which impartupon the compound resistance to CYP2D6 metabolism.

In general terms, changes in pKa can have a predominant effect on P450enzyme (e.g., CYP2D6) substrate binding. P450 enzyme substrates thatinclude more basic amine groups are associated with higher affinitiesand catalytic efficiencies. The present disclosure provides fluorinesubstituted analogs where the pKa of the amino group is lowered (i.e.,lower basicity) relative to the amine group of fenfluramine.

In addition, high lipophilicity of substituent groups in a metabolizingenzyme, such as a P450 enzymes can be associated with high affinity andcatalytic efficiencies. In certain cases, the a P450 enzyme is selectedfrom CYP2D6, CYP2C19, CYP1A2, CYP2B6 CYP3A4 and CYP2C9. The presentdisclosure provides substituted analogs of fenfluramine which includeone or more hydrophilic substituents not present in fenfluramine whichimpart on the compound a desirable reduced liphophilicity.

Deuteration of biologically active compounds of interest can produceanalogs with improved pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD),and/or toxicity profiles. In some embodiments, fenfluramine analogs ofinterest include a deuterium substituent at any convenient location(e.g., as described herein) adjacent to the amine nitrogen atom. Incertain instances, the fenfluramine analog includes 2 or more deuteriumsubstituents, such as 3 or more, 4 or more, or 5 or more deuteriumsubstituents. In some cases, the deuterium substituents are located oncarbon atoms adjacent to the amino N atoms on the compound, e.g., thealpha-carbon atom. In some cases, the two or more deuterium substituentsare located on the same carbon atom adjacent to the amino nitrogen.

Other modifications of interest that can be incorporated into thesubject fenfluramine analogs include, but are not limited to,replacement of the —CF₃ aryl substituent of fenfluramine, e.g., with anisosteric or isoelectronic group, and introduction of quaternary aminogroup. In some instances, the fenfluramine includes a —SF₅ arylsubstituent. In certain instances, the fenfluramine analog is anN-alkylated analog where the amine nitrogen is a quartery amine, i.e., apositively charged ammonium group. In some embodiments, the analogincludes an N-methylated amine group.

Aspects of the present disclosure include fenfluramine analogs includingan additional substituent on the amino N atom that sterically hindersthe binding of the compound to a metabolizing enzyme. Any convenientsubstituents may be included at the N atom of the subject compounds toprovide a sterically bulky group. In some cases, the N-substituent ofinterest is a N-alkyl or N-substituted alkyl group. In some cases, theN-substituent is a N-aryl, N-heteroaryl, N-substituted aryl orN-substituted heteroaryl group. Substituents of interest include, butare not limited to, methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, tert-butyl,trifluoromethyl, phenyl, benzyl and substituted benzyl. In someembodiments, the analog includes an N-t-butyl group.

In some embodiments, the fenfluramine analog is a compound having theformula (I):

wherein:

R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆ and R₇ are independently selected from hydrogen,halogen, X₁, X₂, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano,hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl,substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl,substituted heterocycle, or together with a second R¹-R⁷ group form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted wherein R₂ and R₅, R₂ and R₄, R₁ and R₅,R₆ and R₇, and/or R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl;

m is 0-4; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;or a salt thereof.

In some embodiments of formula (I), R₂ and R₅ are cyclically linkedtogether to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring ora heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted. In some embodiments offormula (I), R₂ and R₄ are cyclically linked together to form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted. In some embodiments of formula (I), R₁and R₅ are cyclically linked together to form a cycloalkyl ring, aheterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ring that is optionallysubstituted. In some embodiments of formula (I), R₆ and R₇ arecyclically linked together to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocyclering, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted.In some embodiments of formula (I), R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linkedtogether to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring ora heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted.

In some embodiments, the fenfluramine analog is a compound having theformula (II):

wherein:

R₁ is an alkyl, a substituted alkyl (e.g., CF₃) or SF₅;

R₂, R₃, R₄ and R₅ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen,alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl,heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substitutedheterocycle, where R₂ and R₅ or R₂ and R₄ are optionally cyclicallylinked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;or a salt thereof. In some embodiments of formula (I)-(II), R₂ and R₄are independently selected from hydrogen, alkyl, substituted alkyl,aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryland substituted heterocycle.In some embodiments of formula (II), R₂ and R₅ are cyclically linkedtogether to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring ora heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted. In some embodiments offormula (II), R₂ and R₄ are cyclically linked together to form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted. In certain cases, R₂ is cyclicallylinked to R₅, e.g., to form a 5, 6 or 7-membered carbocyclic orheterocyclic ring, which may be saturated or unsaturated. In someembodiments of formula (I)-(II), R₅ is selected from hydrogen, halogen,alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, substituted alkoxy,alkyl and substituted alkyl. In certain cases, R₅ is cyclically linkedto R₂, e.g., to form a 5, 6 or 7-membered carbocyclic or heterocyclicring, which may be saturated or unsaturated. In some embodiments offormula (I)-(II), each R₃ is selected from hydrogen, alkyl andsubstituted alkyl. In some embodiments of formula (I)-(II), n is 1. Insome embodiments of formula (I)-(II), n is 2. In some embodiments offormula (I), R₃ is H. In some embodiments of formula (I)-(II), R₃ is H.In some cases, R₃ is selected from heteroaryl, substituted aryl,substituted heteroaryl. In some cases, R₃ is selected from methyl,ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, tert-butyl, trifluoromethyl, phenyl,benzyl and substituted benzyl. In some embodiments of formula (I)-(II),R₃ is t-butyl and n is 1.

In some embodiments of Formulae (I)-(II), the fenfluramine analog hasthe formula (III):

wherein X₁-X₇ are each independently H, D or F, and R₁, R₃ and R₄ are asdefined in any of the embodiments of formula (I). In some embodiments offormula (III), R₃ is selected from hydrogen, alkyl and substitutedalkyl. In some embodiments of formula (III), R₃ is H. In someembodiments of formula (III), R₃ is selected from heteroaryl,substituted aryl, substituted heteroaryl. In some cases, R₃ is selectedfrom methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, tert-butyl,trifluoromethyl, phenyl, benzyl and substituted benzyl. In someembodiments of formula (III), R₃ is t-butyl.

In some embodiments of formula (III), X₁-X₇ are each independently H orF. In some embodiments of formula (III), at least one of X₁-X₇ is F. Insome embodiments of formula (III), at least two of X₁-X₇ is F. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least three of X₁-X₇ is F. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least four of X₁-X₇ is F. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least five of X₁-X₇ is F. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least six of X₁-X₇ is F.

In some embodiments of formula (III), X₁-X₇ are each independently H orD. In some embodiments of formula (III), at least one of X₁-X₇ is D. Insome embodiments of formula (III), at least two of X₁-X₇ is D. In someembodiments of formula (II), at least three of X₁-X₇ is D. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least four of X₁-X₇ is D. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least five of X₁-X₇ is D. In someembodiments of formula (III), at least six of X₁-X₇ is D.

In some embodiments of Formulae (I)-(II), the fenfluramine analog hasthe formula (IV):

wherein X₈-X₁₀ and each X are independently H, D or F, provided at leastone X₈-X₁₀ or X is F. In some embodiments of Formula (IV), each X is F.In some embodiments of Formula (IV), each X is D. In some embodiments ofFormula (IV), each X is H. In some embodiments of Formula (IV), each Xis F. In some embodiments of Formula (IV), X₈ is F. In some embodimentsof Formula (IV), X₉ and X₁₀ are each F.

In some embodiments of Formula (IV), the fenfluramine analog has one ofthe following structures:

In some embodiments of Formula (I), the fenfluramine analog has one ofthe formulae (IVa)-(IVc):

wherein X₁₁, X₁₂ and each X is independently H, D or F; and

R₁₁-R₁₆ are each independently an alkyl or a substituted alkyl.

In some embodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), each X is F. In someembodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), X₁₁ is F and X₁₂ is H. In someembodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), X₁₁ is F and X₁₂ is F. In someembodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), X₁₁ is F and X₁₂ is D. In someembodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), X₁₁ is D and X₁₂ is D. In someembodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), R₁₁ is a substituted alkyl (e.g.,as described herein). In some embodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), R₁₂is a substituted alkyl (e.g., as described herein). In some embodimentsof formulae (IVa)-(IVc), R₁₃ is selected from methyl, ethyl, propyl,isopropyl, butyl, tert-butyl, trifluoromethyl, phenyl, benzyl andsubstituted benzyl. In some embodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), R₁₃ isa tert-butyl. In some embodiments of formulae (IVa)-(IVc), R₁₅ and R₁₆are each an alkyl, such as methyl.

In some embodiments of Formula (I), the fenfluramine analog has theformula (V):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₅, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above, p is 0, 1 or 2,and R₈ and R₉ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen, alkoxy,acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle,heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substituted heterocycle, or R₈and R₉ are cyclically linked to form a 5 or 6-membered cycloalkyl,heterocycle, aryl or heteroaryl ring, that is optionally furthersubstituted, where the dashed bond represents a single or doublecovalent bond.

In some embodiments of Formula (V), R⁸ and R⁹ are not cyclically linked.In some embodiments of Formula (V), p is 0. In some embodiments ofFormula (V), p is 1. In some embodiments of Formula (V), p is 2. In someembodiments of formula (V), each R₁ is independently selected fromhalogen, CF₃, SF₅, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, alkyl ester,substituted alkyl ester, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy,alkyl, substituted alkyl; R₇ is hydrogen, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkylcarbonyloxy, or substituted alkyl carbonyloxy; R₃ ishydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl; m is 0-4; and p is 0 or 1. In someembodiments of Formula (V), R₆ is aryl or substituted aryl. In someembodiments of Formula (V), R₆ is phenyl or substituted phenyl. In someembodiments of Formula (V), R₆ is heteroaryl or substituted heteroaryl.

In some embodiments of Formula (V), R⁸ and R⁹ are cyclically linked andtogether form an aryl or substituted aryl ring, e.g., a fused benzenering. In some embodiments of Formula (V), R₆ are R₆ are hydrogen, fluoroor deuteron. In some embodiments of Formula (V), R₆ are R₆ are hydrogen.

In some embodiments of Formula (V), R⁸ and R⁹ are cyclically linked andtogether form an aryl or substituted aryl ring, and R₈ and R₅ are alsocyclically linked and together form a 6-membered carbocycle ring, e.g.,a partially unsaturated fused ring. In some cases, the compound includesa 4-ring system of fused carbocyclic and heterocyclic rings. In someembodiments of Formula (V), R₆ are R₆ are hydrogen, fluoro or deuterium.In some embodiments of Formula (V), R₆ are R₆ are hydrogen.

In some embodiments of Formula (V), the fenfluramine analog has theformula (VI):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₇, and m are as defined above, and p is 0, 1 or 2.

In some embodiments of formula (VI), each R₁ is independently selectedfrom halogen, CF₃, SF₅, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, alkyl ester,substituted alkyl ester, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy,alkyl, substituted alkyl; R₇ is hydrogen, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkylcarbonyloxy, or substituted alkyl carbonyloxy; R₃ ishydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl; each m is 0-4; and p is 0 or 1. Incertain embodiments of formula (VI), each R₁ is independently selectedfrom halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; R₇ is hydrogen or hydroxy; R₃ ishydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl; each m is 0, 1 or 2; and p is 0or 1. In certain embodiments of formula (VI), R₇ is hydrogen or hydroxy;R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl; each m is 0; and p is 0or 1. In certain embodiments of formula (VI), R₇ is hydrogen. In certainembodiments of formula (VI), R₇ is hydroxy. In certain embodiments offormula (VI), R₃ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (VI), R₃is alkyl or substituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (VI),each m is 0. In certain embodiments of formula (VI), p is 0. In certainembodiments of formula (VI), p is 1.

In certain embodiments of formula (VI), the fenfluramine analog has oneof the following structures:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

In some embodiments of formula (V), the fenfluramine analog has formula(VII):

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

In certain embodiments of formula (VII), each R₁ is independentlyselected from halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; R₇ is hydrogen or hydroxy;R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl; and each m is 0, 1 or 2. Incertain embodiments of formula (VII), R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl orsubstituted alkyl; and each m is 0. In certain embodiments of formula(VII), R₃ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (VII), R₃ isalkyl or substituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (VII),each m is 0.

In certain embodiments of formula (VII), the fenfluramine analog has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

In certain instances, the fenfluramine analog is apomorphine or astructural analog or derivative thereof. Apomorphine structural analogsand derivatives of interest, include but are not limited to, thosecompounds described in EP1496915 by Holick et al. In certain instances,the fenfluramine analog is N-propylnorapomorphine.

In some embodiments of Formula (I), the fenfluramine analog has theformula (VIII):

wherein R₁-R₄, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above.

In certain embodiments of formula (VIII), each R₁ is independentlyselected from halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; and m is 0, 1 or 2. Incertain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl orsubstituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₃ ishydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₃ is alkyl orsubstituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (VIII), m is 0. Incertain embodiments of formula (VIII), m is 1 and R₁ is a 4-substituent.In certain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₇ is hydrogen. In certainembodiments of formula (VIII), R₂ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. Incertain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₂ is hydrogen. In certainembodiments of formula (VIII), R₄ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments offormula (VIII), R₄ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. In certain embodimentsof formula (VIII), R₆ is a cycloalkyl, a substituted cycloalkyl, anaryl, a substituted aryl, a heterocycle or a substituted heterocycle. Incertain embodiments of formula (VIII), R₆ and R₇ are cyclically linkedto form a 4, 5 or 6-membered cycloalkyl ring, optionally substitutedwith one or more R₁.

In some embodiments of Formula (I) and (VIII), the fenfluramine analoghas the formula (IX):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₄, and each m are as defined above.

In certain embodiments of formula (IX), each R₁ is independentlyselected from halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; and each m is 0, 1 or 2.In certain embodiments of formula (IX), R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl orsubstituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (IX), R₃ ishydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (IX), R₃ is alkyl orsubstituted alkyl. In certain embodiments of formula (IX), each m is 0or 1. In certain embodiments of formula (IX), each m is 0 or 1 and R₁ isa 4-substituent. In certain embodiments of formula (IX), R₄ is hydrogen.In certain embodiments of formula (IX), R₄ is alkyl or substitutedalkyl.

In certain embodiments, the fenfluramine analog is Desvenlafaxine or astructural analog or derivative thereof. In certain embodiments, thefenfluramine analog is Desvenlafaxine or O-desmethylvenlafaxine. Incertain embodiments of formula (VII), the fenfluramine analog has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

In some embodiments of Formula (I) and (VIII), the fenfluramine analoghas the formula (X):

wherein R₁-R₄, and each m are as defined above, and q is 0, 1 or 2.

In certain embodiments of formula (X), each R₁ is independently selectedfrom halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; and each m is 0, 1 or 2. In certainembodiments of formula (X), R₂ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. In certainembodiments of formula (X), R₂ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments offormula (X), R₃ is hydrogen, alkyl or substituted alkyl. In certainembodiments of formula (X), R₃ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments offormula (X), R₃ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. In certain embodiments offormula (X), each m is 0 or 1. In certain embodiments of formula (X),each m is 0 or 1 and R₁ is a 4-substituent. In certain embodiments offormula (X), R₄ is hydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (X), R₄is alkyl or substituted alkyl.

In some embodiments of Formula (X), the fenfluramine analog has theformula (XIa) or (XIb):

In certain embodiments of formulae (XIa)-(XIb), each R₁ is independentlyselected from halogen, CF₃, SF₅, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl; and m is 0, 1 or 2. Incertain embodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), each R₁ is independentlyselected from halogen, CF₃, SF₅ and hydroxy; and m is 0 or 1. In certainembodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₂ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. Incertain embodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₂ is hydrogen. In certainembodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₃ is hydrogen. In certainembodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₃ is alkyl or substituted alkyl. Incertain embodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), each m is 0 or 1. In certainembodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), each m is 0 or 1 and R₁ is a4-substituent. In certain embodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₄ ishydrogen. In certain embodiments of formula (XIa)-(XIb), R₄ is alkyl orsubstituted alkyl.

In certain instances, the fenfluramine analog is sibutramine or astructural analog or derivative thereof. Sibutramine structural analogsand derivatives of interest, include but are not limited to, didesmethylsibutramine. In certain embodiments of formula (XIb), the fenfluramineanalog has the structure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Preparation of Fenfluramine Compounds

Any convenient methods of preparing fenfluramine can be adapted in thepreparation of the subject compounds. Exemplary methods of interestwhich can be adapted for use in the preparation of the subjectfenfluramine analogs are described below.

Fenfluramine has been synthesized in many ways, some going through thesynthesis of the intermediate 1-(3-trifluoromethyl)phenyl-propan-2-one.This U.S. Pat. No. 3,198,833 describes some syntheses of this ketonestarting from 3-trifluoromethylphenylacetonitrile or from thecorresponding alcohol.

Fenfluramine can be obtained from1-(3-trifluoromethyl)phenyl-propan-2-one through reductive aminationwith an amine, for instance as described in Hungarian Patent HU T055343.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,586 describes a process for manufacturing1-(3-trifluoromethyl)phenyl-propan-2-one intermediate in the synthesisof fenfluramine that includes reacting the diazonium salt of3-trifluoromethylaniline with isopropenyl acetate in a polar solvent inthe presence of a catalytic amount of a cuprous salt and, optionally, ofa base and purifying the crude product through the bisulfite complex ordistillation under vacuum.

Methods of Use

The above-described compounds may be employed in a variety of methods.As summarized above, aspects of the method include administering to asubject in need thereof a therapeutically effective amount of afenfluramine analog (e.g., a structural or functional analog offenfluramine as described herein) to treat or prevent a disease orcondition of interest. By “therapeutically effective amount” is meantthe concentration of a compound that is sufficient to elicit the desiredbiological effect (e.g., treatment or prevention of epilepsy). Diseasesand conditions of interest include, but are not limited to, epilepsy,particularly intractable forms of epilepsy including Dravet syndrome,Lennox Gastaut syndrome and Doose syndrome, neurological relateddiseases, obesity and obesity related diseases.

In some embodiments, the subject method includes administering to asubject a subject compound to treat a neurological related disease.Neurological related diseases of interest include, but are not limitedto, epilepsy, and severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy (Dravetsyndrome), Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Doose syndrome. In certainembodiments, the subject is human. In certain instances, the subjectsuffers from Dravet syndrome. In certain embodiments, the compound isadministered as a pharmaceutical preparation.

Thus, according to a still further aspect of the present invention,there is provided a method of stimulating one or more 5-HT receptors inthe brain of a patient by administering an effective dose of afenfluramine analog to said patient, said one or more 5-HT receptorsbeing selected from one or more of 5-HT₁, 5-HT_(1A), 5-HT_(1B),5-HT_(1C), 5-HT_(1D), 5-HT_(1E), 5-HT_(1F), 5-HT₂, 5-HT_(2A), 5-HT_(2B),5-HT_(2C), 5-HT₃, 5-HT₄, 5-HT₅, 5-HT_(5A), 5-HT_(5B) 5-HT₆, and 5-HT₇amongst others. In certain embodiments of this aspect of the invention,the patient has been diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome.

In embodiments of the invention, any effective dose of the fenfluramineanalog can be employed. In certain embodiments, a daily dose of lessthan about 10 mg/kg/day is employed, such as about 9 mg/kg/day, about 8mg/kg/day, about 7 mg/kg/day, about 6 mg/kg/day, about 5 mg/kg/day,about 4 mg/kg/day, about 3 mg/kg/day, about 2 mg/kg/day, about 1mg/kg/day, about 0.9 mg/kg/day, about 0.8 mg/kg/day, about 0.7mg/kg/day, about 0.6 mg/kg/day, or about 0.5 mg/kg/day is employed. Insome cases, a daily dose of between about 1 mg/kg/day and about 10mg/kg/day is employed, such as between about 2 mg/kg/day and about 10mg/kg/day, between about 3 mg/kg/day and about 10 mg/kg/day, betweenabout 4 mg/kg/day and about 10 mg/kg/day, or between about 5 mg/kg/dayand about 10 mg/kg/day. In some cases, a daily dose of between about 0.5mg/kg/day and about 1.0 mg/kg/day is employed. In certain embodiments, adaily dose of less than about 1.0 mg/kg/day is employed. In some cases,a preferred dose is less than about 0.5 to about 0.01 mg/kg/day.

As indicated above the dosing is based on the weight of the patient.However, for convenience the dosing amounts may be preset such as in theamount of 1 mg, 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 10 mg, 15 mg, 20 mg, 30 mg, 40 mg, or 50mg. In general the smallest dose which is effective should be used forthe particular patient.

The dose of fenfluramine analog administered in the methods of thepresent invention can be formulated in any pharmaceutically acceptabledosage form including, but not limited to oral dosage forms such astablets including orally disintegrating tablets, capsules, lozenges,oral solutions or syrups, oral emulsions, oral gels, oral films, buccalliquids, powder e.g. for suspension, and the like; injectable dosageforms; transdermal dosage forms such as transdermal patches, ointments,creams; inhaled dosage forms; and/or nasally, rectally, vaginallyadministered dosage forms. Such dosage forms can be formulated for oncea day administration, or for multiple daily administrations (e.g. 2, 3or 4 times a day administration).

Administration of the subject compounds may be systemic or local. Incertain embodiments, administration to a mammal will result in systemicrelease of a subject compound (for example, into the bloodstream).Methods of administration can include enteral routes, such as oral,buccal, sublingual, and rectal; topical administration, such astransdermal and intradermal; and parenteral administration. Suitableparenteral routes include injection via a hypodermic needle or catheter,for example, intravenous, intramuscular, subcutaneous, intradermal,intraperitoneal, intraarterial, intraventricular, intrathecal, andintracameral injection and non-injection routes, such as intravaginalrectal, or nasal administration. In certain embodiments, the subjectcompounds and compositions are administered orally. In certainembodiments, it may be desirable to administer a compound locally to thearea in need of treatment. In some embodiments, the method ofadministration of the subject compound is parenteral administration.This may be achieved, for example, by local infusion during surgery,topical application, e.g., in conjunction with a wound dressing aftersurgery, by injection, by means of a catheter, by means of asuppository, or by means of an implant, said implant being of a porous,non-porous, or gelatinous material, including membranes, such assialastic membranes, or fibers.

In some embodiments, the subject method includes administering to asubject an appetite suppressing amount of the subject compound to treatobesity. Any convenient methods for treating obesity may be adapted foruse with the subject fenfluramine analogs. Any of the pharmaceuticalcompositions described herein can find use in treating a subject forobesity. Combination therapy includes administration of a singlepharmaceutical dosage formulation which contains the subject compoundand one or more additional agents; as well as administration of thesubject compound and one or more additional agent(s) in its own separatepharmaceutical dosage formulation. For example, a subject compound andan additional agent active with appetite suppressing activity (e.g.,phentermine or topiramate) can be administered to the patient togetherin a single dosage composition such as a combined formulation, or eachagent can be administered in a separate dosage formulation. Whereseparate dosage formulations are used, the subject compound and one ormore additional agents can be administered concurrently, or atseparately staggered times, e.g., sequentially. In some embodiments, themethod further includes co-administering to the subject with the subjectfenfluramine analog, an antiepileptic agent. Antiepileptic agents ofinterest that find use in methods of co-administering include, but arenot limited to, Acetazolamide, Carbamazepine, Clobazam, Clonazepam,Eslicarbazepine acetate, Ethosuximide, Gabapentin, Lacosamide,Lamotrigine, Levetiracetam, Nitrazepam, Oxcarbazepine, Perampanel,Piracetam, Phenobarbital, Phenytoin, Pregabalin, Primidone, Retigabine,Rufinamide, Sodium valproate, Stiripentol, Tiagabine, Topiramate,Vigabatrin and Zonisamide.

In some embodiments, the subject method is an in vitro method thatincludes contacting a sample with a subject compound. The protocols thatmay be employed in these methods are numerous, and include but are notlimited to, serotonin release assays from neuronal cells, cell-freeassays, binding assays (e.g., 5HT2B receptor binding assays); cellularassays in which a cellular phenotype is measured, e.g., gene expressionassays; and assays that involve a particular animal model for acondition of interest (e.g., Dravet syndrome, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome orDoose syndrome).

Pharmaceutical Preparations

Also provided are pharmaceutical preparations. Pharmaceuticalpreparations are compositions that include a compound (either alone orin the presence of one or more additional active agents) present in apharmaceutically acceptable vehicle. The term “pharmaceuticallyacceptable” means approved by a regulatory agency of the Federal or astate government or listed in the U.S. Pharmacopeia or other generallyrecognized pharmacopeia for use in mammals, such as humans. The term“vehicle” refers to a diluent, adjuvant, excipient, or carrier withwhich a compound of the invention is formulated for administration to amammal.

The choice of excipient will be determined in part by the particularcompound, as well as by the particular method used to administer thecomposition. Accordingly, there is a wide variety of suitableformulations of the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention.

The dosage form of a fenfluramine analog employed in the methods of thepresent invention can be prepared by combining the fenfluramine analogwith one or more pharmaceutically acceptable diluents, carriers,adjuvants, and the like in a manner known to those skilled in the art ofpharmaceutical formulation.

By way of illustration, the fenfluramine analog can be admixed withconventional pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and excipients (i.e.,vehicles) and used in the form of aqueous solutions, tablets, capsules,elixirs, suspensions, syrups, wafers, and the like. Such pharmaceuticalcompositions contain, in certain embodiments, from about 0.1% to about90% by weight of the active compound, and more generally from about 1%to about 30% by weight of the active compound. The pharmaceuticalcompositions may contain common carriers and excipients, such assolubilizers, isotonic agents, suspending agents, emulsifying agents,stabilizers, preservatives, colorants, diluents, buffering agents,surfactants, moistening agents, flavoring agents and disintegrators, andincluding, but not limited to, corn starch, gelatin, lactose, dextrose,sucrose, microcrystalline cellulose, kaolin, mannitol, dicalciumphosphate, sodium chloride, alginic acid, vegetable or other similaroils, synthetic aliphatic acid glycerides, esters of higher aliphaticacids or propylene glycol, corn starch, potato starch, acacia,tragacanth, gelatin, glycerin, sorbitol, ethanol, polyethylene glycol,colloidal silicon dioxide, croscarmellose sodium, talc, magnesiumstearate and stearic acid. Disintegrators commonly used in theformulations of this invention include croscarmellose, microcrystallinecellulose, corn starch, sodium starch glycolate and alginic acid. Thecompounds can be formulated into preparations for injection bydissolving, suspending or emulsifying them in an aqueous or nonaqueoussolvent, such as vegetable or other similar oils, synthetic aliphaticacid glycerides, esters of higher aliphatic acids or propylene glycol;and if desired, with conventional additives such as solubilizers,isotonic agents, suspending agents, emulsifying agents, stabilizers andpreservatives.

In some embodiments, formulations suitable for oral administration caninclude (a) liquid solutions, such as an effective amount of thecompound dissolved in diluents, such as water, or saline; (b) capsules,sachets or tablets, each containing a predetermined amount of the activeingredient, as solids or granules; (c) suspensions in an appropriateliquid; and (d) suitable emulsions. Tablet forms can include one or moreof lactose, mannitol, corn starch, potato starch, microcrystallinecellulose, acacia, gelatin, colloidal silicon dioxide, croscarmellosesodium, talc, magnesium stearate, stearic acid, and other excipients,colorants, diluents, buffering agents, moistening agents, preservatives,flavoring agents, and pharmacologically compatible excipients. Lozengeforms can include the active ingredient in a flavor, usually sucrose andacacia or tragacanth, as well as pastilles including the activeingredient in an inert base, such as gelatin and glycerin, or sucroseand acacia, emulsions, gels, and the like containing, in addition to theactive ingredient, such excipients as are described herein.

In some cases, the compound is formulated for oral administration. Insome cases, for an oral pharmaceutical formulation, suitable excipientsinclude pharmaceutical grades of carriers such as mannitol, lactose,glucose, sucrose, starch, cellulose, gelatin, magnesium stearate, sodiumsaccharine, and/or magnesium carbonate. For use in oral liquidformulations, the composition may be prepared as a solution, suspension,emulsion, or syrup, being supplied either in solid or liquid formsuitable for hydration in an aqueous carrier, such as, for example,aqueous saline, aqueous dextrose, glycerol, or ethanol, preferably wateror normal saline. If desired, the composition may also contain minoramounts of non-toxic auxiliary substances such as wetting agents,emulsifying agents, or buffers.

Particular formulations of the invention are in a liquid form. Theliquid may be a solution or suspension and may be an oral solution orsyrup which is included in a bottle with a pipette which is graduated interms of milligram amounts which will be obtained in a given volume ofsolution. The liquid solution makes it possible to adjust the solutionfor small children which can be administered anywhere from 0.5 mg to 15mg and any amount between in half milligram increments and thusadministered in 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 mg, etc.

A liquid composition will generally consist of a suspension or solutionof the compound or pharmaceutically acceptable salt in a suitable liquidcarrier(s), for example, ethanol, glycerine, sorbitol, non-aqueoussolvent such as polyethylene glycol, oils or water, with a suspendingagent, preservative, surfactant, wetting agent, flavoring or coloringagent. Alternatively, a liquid formulation can be prepared from areconstitutable powder.

EXAMPLES

The following examples are put forth so as to provide those of ordinaryskill in the art with a complete disclosure and description of how tomake and use the present invention, and are not intended to limit thescope of what the inventors regard as their invention nor are theyintended to represent that the experiments below are all or the onlyexperiments performed. Efforts have been made to ensure accuracy withrespect to numbers used (e.g. amounts, temperature, etc.) but someexperimental errors and deviations should be accounted for. Unlessindicated otherwise, parts are parts by weight, molecular weight isweight average molecular weight, temperature is in degrees Centigrade,and pressure is at or near atmospheric.

Example 1 Preparation of 1-(3-Trifluoromethyl)phenyl-propan-2-one

35 mL of water and 45 g of 37% (w/w) aqueous hydrochloric acid are putin a flask equipped with stirrer and dropping funnel. 24.25 Grams (0.151moles) of m-trifluoromethylaniline are added after having cooled to 10degree C. with an ice bath and then, at 5 degree C., an aqueous solutioncontaining 12.43 g (0.180 moles) of sodium nitrite in 150 ml of water isslowly added. The reaction mixture is stirred for 30 minutes and then ispoured during 30 minutes into a mixture made by 90 ml of water, 1.35 g(0.014 moles) of cuprous chloride, 2.30 g (0.013 moles) of cupricchloride dihydrate, 50 ml of acetone, 40.8 g (0.300 moles) of sodiumacetate trihydrate and 23 g (0.230 moles) of isopropenyl acetate whilekeeping the reaction temperature at 30 degree C. After further 30minutes of stirring, the reaction mixture is brought to 20 degree C., 50ml of methylene chloride are added and the two layers are separated.

The aqueous layer is discarded while the organic layer is concentratedunder vacuum until an oil is obtained which is treated with 35 g ofsodium metabisulfite, 70 ml of water and 150 ml of heptane understirring at room temperature for 12 hours. The suspension is filtered,the bisulfite complex is washed on the filter with 50 ml of heptane andthen suspended in a two-phase mixture made by 100 ml of methylenechloride and 150 ml of a 10% (w/v) aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide.The layers are separated after one hour of stirring at room temperature,the aqueous phase is discarded while the organic layer is washed withwater and evaporated under vacuum to give pure ketone.

Example 2

Method for Assaying Activity of Analogs Using Zebrafish Model ofEpilepsy

Zebrafish embryos (Danio rerio) heterozygous for the scn1Lab mutation(scn1Lab+/−) are backcrossed with Tupfel longfin wildtype (WTscn1Lab+/+). Adult zebrafish are housed at 28.0° C., on a 14/10 hourlight/dark cycle under standard aquaculture conditions. Fertilized eggsare collected via natural spawning. Anaesthetized fish (tricaine 0.02%)are fin-clipped and genotyped by PCR. After genotyping, samples arepurified (MinElute PCR Purification Kit) and sequenced by LGC Genomics.Age-matched Tupfel longfin wildtype larvae are used as control group (WTscn1Lab+/+). These embryos and larvae are kept on a 14/10 hourlight/dark cycle in embryo medium (Danieaus): 1.5 mM HEPES, pH 7.6, 17.4mM NaCl, 0.21 mM KCl, 0.12 mM MgSO₄, and 0.18 mM Ca(NO₃)₂ in anincubator at 28.0° C.

To evaluate the locomotor activity of homozygous scn1Lab−/− mutants andcontrol WT scn1Lab+/+, zebrafish larvae are placed in a 96-well plate in100 μL of embryo medium from 4 to 8 dpf. Each day the larvae are trackedin an automated tracking device (ZebraBox™ apparatus; Viewpoint, Lyon,France) for 10 min after 30 min habituation (100-second integrationinterval). All recordings are performed at the same time during daytimeperiod. The total distance in large movements is recorded and quantifiedusing ZebraLab™ software (Viewpoint, Lyon, France). Data are pooledtogether from at least three independent experiments with at least 24larvae per condition.

Epileptiform activity is measured by open-field recordings in thezebrafish larval forebrain at 7 dpf. Homozygous scn1Lab−/− mutants andcontrol WT scn1Lab+/+ are embedded in 2% low-melting-point agarose(Invitrogen) to position a glass electrode into the forebrain. Thisglass electrode is filled with artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF)made from: 124 mM NaCl, 2 mM KCl, 2 mM MgSO₄, 2 mM CaCl₂, 1.25 mMKH₂PO₄, 26 mM NaHCO₃ and 10 mM glucose (resistance 1-5 MΩ) and connectedto a high-impedance amplifier. Subsequently, recordings are performed incurrent clamp mode, low-pass filtered at 1 kHz, high-pass filtered 0.1Hz, digital gain 10, at sampling intervals of 10 s (MultiClamp 700Bamplifier, Digidata 1440A digitizer, both Axon instruments, USA). Singlerecordings are performed for 10 min. Epileptiform activity is quantifiedaccording to the duration of spiking paroxysms as described previously(Orellana-Paucar et al, 2012). Electrograms are analyzed with the aid ofClampfit 10.2 software (Molecular Devices Corporation, USA). Spontaneousepileptiform events are taken into account when the amplitude exceededthree times the background noise and lasted longer than 50 milliseconds(ms). This threshold is chosen due to the less frequent observation ofepileptiform events in wildtype ZF larvae with a shorter duration than50 ms.

Analogs (agonists) and antagonists can be chosen based on their high andselective affinity for the different 5-HT_(subtype) receptors (Ki innanomolar range), and on their logP value (i.e. >1, expected to exhibita good bioavailability in zebrafish larvae (Milan, 2003)). Compounds aredissolved in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO, 99.9% spectroscopy grade, AcrosOrganics) and diluted in embryo medium to achieve a final DMSOconcentration of 0.1% w/v, which also served as a vehicle control (VHC).

To evaluate the maximal tolerated concentration (MTC) of each compound,6 dpf-old WT scn1Lab+/+ zebrafish larvae are incubated in a 96-wellplate (tissue culture plate, flat bottom, FALCON®, USA) with differentconcentrations of compound or VHC at 28° C. on a 14/10 hour light/darkcycle under standard aquaculture conditions (medium is replenisheddaily). Each larva is individually checked under the microscope during aperiod of 48 hours for the following signs of toxicity: decreased or notouch response upon a light touch of the tail, loss of posture, bodydeformation, edema, changes in heart rate or circulation and death. Themaximum tolerated concentration (MTC) is defined as the highestconcentration at which no signs of toxicity are observed in 12 out of 12zebrafish larvae within 48 hours of exposure to sample. The MTC (Tables1 and 2) is used throughout the work.

Scn1Lab−/− mutants and WT scn1Lab+/+ larvae are arrayed in the sameplate and treated at 6 days post fertilization (dpf) with fenfluramineanalogs (at their MTC) or VHC in individual wells of a 96-well plate.After incubation at 28° C. on a 14/10 hour light/dark cycle and 30-minchamber habituation 6 and 7 dpf larvae are tracked for locomotoractivity for 10 min (100-second integration interval) under darkconditions. An incubation time of 1.5 hours is further referred as shorttreatment (6 dpf). Furthermore these larvae are analyzed after more than22 hours incubation (7 dpf), i.e. long treatment. The total locomotoractivity is quantified using the parameter lardist and plotted in cm. Insome cases, data is pooled together from two (5-HT_(1B)-, 5-HT_(1F)-,5-H_(T3)—, 5-HT₄-, 5-HT_(5A)-, 5-HT₆-agonist and all antagonists except5-HT_(1B)- and 5-HT₇-antagonists) or three (fenfluramine compounds,5-HT_(1A)-, 5-HT_(1D)-, 5-HT_(1E)-, 5-HT_(2A)-, 5-HT_(2B)-, and5-HT_(2C)-agonist) independent experiments with at least 9 larvae pertreatment condition.

Epileptiform activity is measured by open-field recordings in thezebrafish larval forebrain at 7 dpf, as described above. Scn1Lab−/−mutants and WT scn1Lab+/+ larvae are incubated with fenfluramine (25μM), the functional analogs (except for the 5-HT_(5A)-agonist) thatexhibited locomotor-reducing activity in the previous assay (see below)(MTC), a negative control (3.125 μM 5-HT2B-agonist) or VHC on 6 dpf fora minimum of 22 hours (long treatment). Recordings of 7 dpf larvae, fromat least 8 scn1Lab−/− mutant larvae are taken per experimentalcondition. For treated WT scn1Lab+/+ larvae at least 5 per condition areanalyzed, due to the scarce observation of epileptiform activity inwildtype larvae. Electrographic recordings are quantified for thedifferent treatment conditions.

The heads of 7 dpf-old zebrafish larvae are used to determine the amountof the neurotransmitters dopamine, noradrenaline and serotonin present.Six heads per tube are homogenized on ice for one min in 100 μl 0.1 Mantioxidant buffer (containing vitamin C). Homogenates are centrifugedat 15 000 g for 15 min at 4° C. Supernatants (70 μl) are transferred toa sterile tube and stored at −80° C. until analysis.

The neurotransmitter determination is based on the microbore LC-ECDmethod (Sophie Sarre, Katrien Thorré, Ilse Smolders, 1997). Thechromatographic system consists of a FAMOS microautosampler of LCPackings/Dionex (Amsterdam, The Netherlands), a 307 piston pump ofGilson (Villiers-le-Bel, France), a DEGASYS DG-1210 degasser of Dionexand a DECADE II electrochemical detector equipped with a μ-VT03 flowcell (0.7 mm glassy carbon working electrode, Ag/AgCl referenceelectrode, 25 μm spacer) of Antec (Zoeterwoude, The Netherlands). Themobile phase is a mixture of 87% V/V aqueous buffer solution at pH 5.5(100 mM sodium acetate trihydrate, 20 mM citric acid monohydrate, 2 mMsodium decanesulfonate, 0.5 mM disodium edetate) and 13% V/Vacetonitrile. This mobile phase is injected at a flow rate of 60 μL/min.The temperature of the autosampler tray is set on 15° C. and theinjection volume is 10 μL. A microbore UniJet C8 column (100×1.0 mm, 5μm) of Bioanalytical Systems (West Lafayette, Ind., United States) isused as stationary phase. The separation and detection temperature isperformed at 35° C., with a detection potential of +450 mV vs Ag/AgCl.Data acquisition is carried out by Clarity chromatography softwareversion 3.0.2 of Data Apex (Prague, The Czech Republic). The amount ofneurotransmitter (in nmol) is calculated based on the total mass of sixheads.

Statistical analyses are performed using GraphPad Prism 5 software(GraphPad Software, Inc.). The larval locomotor activity is evaluated byusing One-way ANOVA, followed by Dunnett's multiple comparison tests.Values are presented as means±standard deviation (SD). LFP measurements(electrographic brain activity) are analyzed by a Mann-Whitney test.Statistically significant differences (p<0.05) between a treatment groupand the equivalent control groups (scn1Lab−/− mutant or WT scn1Lab+/+)are considered indicative of a decrease or increase in locomotor orelectrographic brain activity of zebrafish larvae. The neurotransmitteramount of scn1Lab−/− mutants is compared with WT scn1Lab+/+ larvae by aStudent's t-test because all data passed the normality test (D'Agostino& Pearson omnibus normality test).

Example 3

Phenotype-Based Antieplileptic Drug Screening in a Zebrafish Model ofDravet Syndrome

Compounds provided by the present disclosure are assessed for theiranticonvulsant activity in vitro using a high-throughput mutantzebrafish screening assay. The following methods can be adapted for usein assessing the subject fenefluramine analogs.

Animals: Scn1A

Zebrafish are maintained in a light- and temperature-controlledaquaculture facility under a standard 14:10 h light/dark photoperiod.Adult Heterozygous scn1Lab±mutant zebrafish are housed in 1.5 L tanks ata density of 5-12 fish per tank and fed twice per day (dry flake and/orflake supplemented with live brine shrimp). Water quality iscontinuously monitored to maintain the following conditions:temperature, 28-30° C.; pH 7.4-8.0; conductivity, 690-710 mS/cm.Zebrafish embryos are maintained in round Petri dishes (catalog#FB0875712, Fisher Scientific) in “embryo medium” consisting of 0.03%Instant Ocean (Aquarium Systems, Inc.) and 000002% methylene blue inreverse osmosis-distilled water.

Larval zebrafish clutches are bred from wild-type (WT; TL strain) orscn1Lab (didys552) heterozygous animals that have been back-crossed toTL wild-type for at least 10 generations. Homozygous mutants (n 6544),which have widely dispersed melanosomes and appear visibly darker asearly as 3 d post-fertilization (dpf; FIG. 1b), or WT larvae (n=71) areused in all experiments at 5 or 6 dpf. Embryos and larvae are raised inplastic petri dishes (90 mm diameter, 20 mm depth) and density islimited to 60 per dish. Larvae between 3 and 7 dpf lack discernible sexchromosomes. The care and maintenance protocols comply with requirements[outlined in the Guide for the Care and Use of Animals (ebrary Inc.,2011) and are subject to approval by the Institutional Animal Care andUse Committee (protocol #AN108659-01D)].

Test Agents:

Compounds for screening are provided as 10 mM DMSO solutions. Testagents for locomotion or electrophysiology studies are dissolved inembryo media and are tested at an initial concentration of 100 M, with afinal DMSO concentration of 2%. In all drug screen studies, compoundsare coded and experiments are performed by investigators who are blindto the nature of the compound. Drug concentrations between 0.5 and 1 mMare used for electrophysiology assays to account for more limiteddiffusion in agar-embedded larvae.

Seizure Monitoring

Zebrafish larvae are placed individually into 1 well of a clearflat-bottomed 96-well microplate (catalog #260836, Fisher Scientific)containing embryo media. To study changes in locomotion, microplates areplaced inside an enclosed motion-tracking device and acclimated to thedark condition for 10-15 min at room temperature. Locomotion plots areobtained for one fish per well at a recording epoch of 10 min using aDanioVision system running EthoVision XT software (DanioVision, NoldusInformation Technology); threshold detection settings to identifyobjects darker than the background are optimized for each experiment.Seizure scoring is performed using the following three-stage scale(Baraban et al., 2005): Stage 0, no or very little swim activity; StageI, increased, brief bouts of swim activity; Stage II, rapid“whirlpool-like” circling swim behavior; and Stage III, paroxysmalwhole-body clonus-like convulsions, and a brief loss of posture. WT fishare normally scored at Stage 0 or I. Plots are analyzed for distancetraveled (in millimeters) and mean velocity (in millimeters per second).As reported previously (Winter et al., 2008; Baraban et al., 2013),velocity changes are a more sensitive assay of seizure behavior.

Baseline recordings of seizure behavior are obtained from mutants bathedin embryo media, as described above; a second locomotion plot is thenobtained following a solution change to a test compound and anequilibration period of 15-30 min. Criteria for a positive hitdesignation are as follows: (1) a decrease in mean velocity of 44%(e.g., a value based on the trial-to-trial variability measured incontrol tracking studies; FIG. 1c); and (2) a reduction to Stage 0 orStage I seizure behavior in the locomotion plot for at least 50% of thetest fish. Each test compound classified as a “positive hit” in thelocomotion assay is confirmed, under direct visualization on astereomicroscope, as the fish being alive based on movement in responseto external stimulation and a visible heartbeat following a 60 min drugexposure.

Toxicity (or mortality) is defined as no visible heartbeat or movementin response to external stimulation in at least 50% of the test fish.Hyperexcitability is defined as a compound causing a 44% increase inswim velocity and/or Stage III seizure activity in at least 50% of thetest fish. Hits identified in the primary locomotion screen are selectedand rescreened, again using the method described above. Select compoundstocks that are successful in two primary locomotion assays, and are notclassified as toxic in two independent clutches of zebrafish are thensubjected to further testing in an electrophysiology assay.

Electrophysiology Assay:

Zebrafish larvae are briefly paralyzed with bungarotoxin (1 mg/ml) andimmobilized in 1.2% agarose; field recordings are obtained fromforebrain structures. Epileptiform events are identified post hoc inClampfit (Molecular Devices) and are defined as multi-spike or polyspikeupward or downward membrane deflections greater than three times thebaseline noise level and 500 ms in duration. During electrophysiologyexperiments zebrafish larvae are continuously monitored for the presence(or absence) of blood flow and heart beat by direct visualization on anOlympus BX51WI upright microscope equipped with a CCD camera andmonitor.

Data Analysis

Data are presented as the mean and SEM, unless stated otherwise.Pairwise statistical significance is determined with a Student'stwo-tailed unpaired t test, ANOVA, or Mann-Whitney rank sum test, asappropriate, unless stated otherwise. Results are considered significantat p 0.05, unless otherwise indicated.

Example 4

Multi-Electrode Array Screening for Anticonvulsant Activity

Test agents are assessed as therapeutic targets by measuring theireffects on electrophysiological parameters identified as reflectingdisease using multi-electrode arrays recording (MEAs) across principalregions of hippocampal brain slices (CA1, CA3, dentate gyrus) taken fromuntreated wild type and DS KO mice.

Tissue Preparation:

Male and female 129S wild-type and DS KO mice, are humanely killed bycervical dislocation. No more than one slice per animal is used toinvestigate any one experimental condition. Brains are swiftly (<2 min)removed and placed in chilled, carboxygenated (95% 02:5% CO2) artificialcerebrospinal fluid (aCSF), comprising (mM) NaCl 124, KCl 3, KH2PO41.25, NaHCO3 36, MgSO4.6H2O 1, d-glucose 10 and CaCl2 2. Conventionaltransverse hippocampal slices (Egert et al., 2002a) are cut at athickness of 450 m using a Campden Vibroslice/M tissue slicer (CampdenInstruments, Loughborough, UK) and left to rest for at least 1 h in aCSFat room temperature before recording commenced.

For Mg2+-free induction of epileptiform activity, MgSO4.6H2O is omittedwithout substitution from the aCSF. Standard or Mg2+-free aCSF is usedthroughout dissection and recording as appropriate with positivecontrols, test agents and vehicle added during recording from previouslyprepared aliquots of concentrated stocks. Aliquots are frozenimmediately after preparation and individually thawed before use. Allreagents and drugs are obtained from Sigma-Aldrich (Poole, UK). Positivecontrols and test agents are dissolved in DMSO at 1000× workingconcentration and stored at −20° C. until use before incorporation intoaCSF; maximum DMSO bath concentration is 0.1% 2.2.

MEA Recordings:

Electrical activity across each hippocampal slice is monitored andrecorded using MEAs (59 electrodes each 30μ diameter with 200 μm spacingand 100 μm recording radius, FIG. 1A; Multi Channel Systems, GmbH,Reutlingen, Germany).

Prior to recording, MEAs are cleaned with 5% (w/v) Terg-A-Zyme(Cole-Palmer, London, UK), methanol and finally distilled water.

Slices are adhered to MEAs using an applied (˜41) and evaporatedcellulose nitrate solution in methanol (0.24%, w/v, ProtranNitrocellulose Transfer Membranes; Schleicher & Schuell Bioscience Inc.,NH, USA; Ma et al., 2008). Slice position on the MEA is ascertained byobservation on a Nikon TS-51 microscope (Nikon, Japan) at magnification×4, with images of the slice and electrode positions being acquired viaa Mikro-Okular camera (Meade Instruments Corp., CA, USA; FIG. 1A) to aPC. Once attached, slices are continually perfused with carboxygenatedaCSF (˜2 ml/min). Slices are maintained at 21° C. in order to providegood separation of synaptically mediated LFP components and maximizeslice viability time. Slice viability and contact with MEA electrodesare assessed by applying voltage pulses (STG2004 stimulator, MultiChannel Systems GmbH, Reutlingen, Germany) through MEA electrodes on theslice (200 s biphasic pulses, ±0.5-3.0 V) to evoke local fieldpotentials.

For each agent, 12-15 recordings are made per condition and in eachtissue type (mutant and wildtype). Signals are amplified (1200× gain),by a 120-channel dual headstage amplifier (MEA60 System, Multi ChannelSystems GmbH, Reutlingen, Germany) and simultaneously sampled at aminimum of 10 kHz per channel on all 60 channels. Data acquisition is toa PC using MC Rack software (Multi Channel Systems GmbH, Reutlingen,Germany) to monitor and record data for offline analysis.

Data Analysis:

Data analyses are performed using in-house scripts for Matlab 6.5 and7.0.4 (Mathworks, Natick, Mass., USA; Matlab scripts used throughoutthis study available on request from authors). Microsoft Excel(Microsoft, Redmond, USA) and MC DataTool (Multi Channel Systems GmbH,Reutlingen, Germany) are also used to process and present data.

Raw data are filtered using a 2 Hz high pass 2nd order Butterworthfilter to remove very low frequency artefacts associated with bathperfusion. Changes in burst amplitude and frequency during controlexperiments are assessed using in-house Matlab 7.0.4 scripts. Data aredownsampled from 10 kHz to 500 Hz, whereupon a single Matlab scriptreturned the peak amplitude (V) of each burst within an experiment andthe time at which the peaks occurred (s). These data are used forrepresentative plots of amplitude and frequency.

Additionally, mean amplitudes are calculated at 10 min intervals usingthe peak amplitudes of the ten bursts directly preceding the time ofinterest. The same ten bursts are also used to calculate frequencywhere: frequency=10/(time of last burst-time of first burst). When dataof this type from different electrodes and slices are pooled, the firstburst from each electrode recording is considered to have occurred at 0s; subsequent bursts are offset by the same amount. This improvedcomparability between recordings from different sources. In controlexperiments assessing amplitude and frequency changes, mean amplitudeand frequency values are normalized to the value calculated at 30 minafter bursting commenced.

Burst propagation paths are determined by constructing contour plotsfrom raw data files at one frame per sampling point (10 kHz) using anin-house adaptation of MEATools (Egert et al., 2002b) in Matlab 6.5 andinterpolated using a 5 point Savitzky-Golay filter before export to JPEGimage format. Individual JPEGs are concatenated and converted into AVIanimations using Photolapse(http://home.hccnet.nl/s.vd.palen/photolapsedlc.html) for later lowspeed replay. After determining burst initiation site, termination siteand resulting propagation path, the time that burst peaks occurred atelectrode positions closest to burst initiation (CA3) and termination(CA1) sites are ascertained in MC Rack. Initiation to terminationdistances is calculated using ImageJ (Abramoff et al., 2004) andpropagation speed thusly derived from time and distance values. Meanpropagation speeds are derived from pooled data.

Spectrograms are produced with Neuroexplorer 4.045 (NexTechnologies,Littleton, Mass., USA) using 20 ms window shifts, 8192fast Fouriertransform (FFT) frequency divisions and a frequency cut-off at 250 Hz.Spectrograms are normalized for comparison by expression of spectralpower as the log of the power spectral density (dB). Power spectraldensity values are produced using Neuroexplorer using 2048 FFT frequencydivisions with a frequency cut-off of 250 Hz. Representative powerspectral density plots are shown for the frequency range 0-50 Hz and aresmoothed using a five point Gaussian filter. However, the fullunsmoothed frequency range (0-250 Hz) is used for quantification oftotal power changes in the absence and presence of anticonvulsant drugs.Data sets of equal duration (≧150 s) in epileptiform and anticonvulsanttreated states are used in the construction of power spectra andsubsequent quantification.

Changes in total power in the presence of anticonvulsant drugs areexpressed as a percentage of the total power in the presence of 100M4-APor absence of Mg2+ for each electrode. Percentage values from individualelectrodes are then pooled as hippocampal regions (CA1, CA3 and dentategyrus (DG)) before averaging. Data from ≧4 electrodes from >1 slicepreparations are analyzed for each region. In experiments whereanticonvulsants are added, bursting is first induced by application of100M 4-AP or Mg2+-free aCSF; 30 min after bursting commenced,phenobarbital or felbamate are applied. Differences in burst frequency,amplitude and duration are thus assessed between the 10 bursts prior todrug application (at 30 min after bursting commenced), and the 10 bursts30 min after drugs had been applied. If no bursts are recorded in thelast 5 min of the 30 min after AED application, bursting is consideredto have been abolished. In this instance, continuing slice viability andfidelity of contact with the MEA are confirmed by evocation of fieldpotentials via electrode stimulation as described above.

Statistical significance is determined by non-parametric Mann-WhitneyU-test in the case of all normalised data and comparisons of frequencyand latency between models. The significance of anticonvulsant drugeffects on propagation speeds is tested using a two-tailed pairedStudents t-test. p≦0.05 is considered significant in all cases. All dataare presented as means±S.E.M and data is given for each hippocampalregion (DG, CA3, CA1).

Example 5

Survival Studies

Dose-response curves are generated for candidate therapeutic agentsusing wild-type and Scn1a^(−/−) mutant knock-out mice.

Treatment of Animals:

129S wild-type mice (controls) and 129S Scn1a knock-out mice (“DS KOmice”) are obtained from The Jackson Laboratory (MMRRC Stock No:37107-JAX). All animal procedures comply with all applicable animalwelfare regulations.

Groups of 10-12 animals having roughly equal numbers of male and femalesare treated with either vehicle, a positive control, or a test agent.Animals are injected subcutaneously with 0.08 ml injection volume twicedaily at 0900 and 1600 hours from P8 until sacrifice. Injection sitesare rotated in the following order: left shoulder, right shoulder, lefthip, right hip. Dose concentrations are adjusted to retain consistentvolumes of administration.

Following treatment, animals are sacrificed at 2 days post-weaning(P23/24) or sooner as required by mathematical model. Animals are thenassessed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov welfare scoring (compared betweengroups (Massey, F. J. “The Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test for Goodness of Fit.”Journal of the American Statistical Association. Vol. 46, No. 253, 1951,pp. 68-78) and Mantel-Cox or Gehan-Breslow-Wilcoxon mortality tests (forthe former, see Mantel N., “Evaluation of survival data and two new rankorder statistics arising in its consideration” Cancer Chemother Rep.1966 PMID: 5910392). Data obtained is subjected to statistical analysis(see below) and is presented as median, IQR and max/min (except %mortality).

Example 6

Assessment of Compounds as Potential Therapeutic Agents for DravetSyndrome Patients Using Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Cortical Neurons

The therapeutic efficacy of compounds of interest, alone and incombination with other commonly used anti-convulsants, is assessed usinginduced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) cortical neurons derived fromDravet syndrome patients who are known responders to fenfluramine.Results obtained for test agents are compared to those obtained forfenfluramine. The following methods can be adapted for use in assessingthe subject fenefluramine analogs.

A. Materials and Methods

Differentiation of Human iPSCs into Cortical Neurons

iPSC cells taken from Dravet syndrome patients known to respond tofenfluramine are differentiated into cortical pyramid-like neurons andcortical interneurons.

Generation of Cortical Pyramidal-Like Neurons

iPSCs are first dissociated into single cells with Accutase or 0.5 mMEDTA (Lonza), and plated onto gelatin-coated dishes for 1 h in hESCmedium with 10 μM ROCK inhibitor. Suspended iPSCs are then re-plated onMatrigel-coated 12-well plates in MEF conditioned hESC medium with 10ng/ml FGF2. At 95% confluence, the medium is changed to 3N mediumsupplemented with 1 μM Dorsomorphin and 10 μM SB431542. Cells arecultured for 8-11 d, and neural induction is monitored by the appearanceof “neural rosettes”. Neuroepithelial cells are dissociated with Dispaseor 5 mM EDTA and replated in 3N medium with 20 ng/ml FGF2 onMatrigelcoated plates. After 2-4 d, FGF2 is withdrawn to promotedifferentiation. Cultures are passaged with Accutase, replated at 5×10⁵on 60 mm Matrigel-coated plates seeded with rodent forebrain glia orhuman iPS derived glia cells in 3N medium and maintained for up to 100 dwith medium changes every other day.

Generation of Cortical Interneurons

iPSC embryoid bodies (EBs) are plated in a neural induction mediumsimilar to that described above with TGF-β inhibitors until aneuroepithelial sheet forms. The neuroepithelial sheet are thenpatterned to medial ganglion eminence (MGE)-like progenitors using highconcentrations of Pur and differentiate the MGE-like progenitors toGABAergic interneurons. A nearly pure population (90%) of GABAergicinterneurons is generated, and confirmed after 7 weeks in culture byperforming immunocytochemistry for GABA.

Measurement of Voltage-Gated Sodium Current and Action Potential Firingin Whole Cells

The effects of compounds of interest, alone and in the presence of knownAEDs, on voltage-gated sodium current and action potential firing inwhole cell is measured using whole cell voltage and current clamprecordings. As a first step, the effect of increasing concentrations oftest compounds on sodium current is measured under voltage-clamp. Theeffect of test compounds on evoked and spontaneous action potentialfiring is then measured under current clamp.

Perfusion of Drugs During Voltage- or Current-Clamp Experiments

Test compounds (at final concentrations of 10 μM to 1 mM) or vehicle(either sodium current recording solution or ACSF) are perfused ontoneurons following recordings of basal sodium current levels or actionpotential firing. Effects of acute and long-term drug applications arethen measured.

Changes in voltage-sensitive sodium current and action potential firingcan be assessed in response to increasing concentrations of a compoundof interest, in the presence and absence of the following AEDsfrequently prescribed for Dravet Syndrome, at the final concentrationindicated: topiramate (200 μM), stiripentol (100 μM), valproic acid (250μM), and clobazam (3 μM).

Voltage-Clamp Recordings

Voltage-clamp recordings are performed as previously described. SeeBrackenbury et. al, Abnormal neuronal patterning occurs during earlypostnatal brain development of Scn1b-null mice and precedeshyperexcitability. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2013; 110(3):1089-94. PMCID:3549092.

Isolated sodium currents are recorded from single neurons (bipolar orpyramidal) at RT (21-22° C.) in the presence of a bath solution thatcontains (in mM): 120 NaCl, 1 BaCl2, 2 MgCl2, 0.2 CdCl2, 1 CaCl, 10HEPES, 20 TEA-Cl and 10 glucose (pH 7.35 with CsOH, Osmolarity: 300-305mOsM). Fire-polished patch pipettes are generated from borosilicateglass capillaries (Warner Instrument Corp.) using a Sutter P-97 puller(Sutter Instrument Co.) and are filled with an internal solutioncontaining (in mM): 1 NaCl, 177 N-methyl-D-glucamine, 10 EGTA, 2 MgCl2,40 HEPES, and 25 phosphocreatine-tris (pH 7.2 with H2SO4). Recordingsare performed within 10-120 min after the culture medium is replaced bybath recording solution and the dish with cells is placed on therecording setup. Experimental data collected includes current-voltagerelationships, current density, voltage-dependence of activation,voltage-dependence of inactivation, and recovery from inactivation.

Current Clamp Recordings

Current clamp recordings are performed as described in Liu et. al,Dravet syndrome patient-derived neurons suggest a novel epilepsymechanism. Ann Neurol. 2013; 74(1):128-39. PMCID: 3775921

For current-clamp recordings of action potentials in iPSC-derivedneurons, the patch pipette is filled with internal solution consistingof (in mM): 135, K-gluconate; 4, NaCl; 0.5, CaCl4; 10, HEPES; 5, EGTA,2, Mg-ATP and 0.4, GTP (pH 7.3, adjusted with KOH). iPSC neurons arebathed in a solution consisting of (in mM): 115, NaCl; 2.5, KCl; 1,MgCl2; 1.25, KH2PO4; 26, NaHCO3; 2, CaCl; 10 HEPES and 10, D-glucose (pH7.4, adjusted with NaOH). Individual action potentials are evoked fromtheir resting membrane potential by injection of a series of 1 msdepolarizing currents beginning from the subthreshold level untilconsistent generation of action potentials at 0.02 nA-increment. Theminimal current required for initiation of the first action potential isdefined as the threshold current. Repetitive spike firing is evoked byinjection of a 1500 ms depolarizing current (0.02 nA) from a holdingpotential at their resting levels. Spontaneous firing is recorded fromneurons held at their resting membrane potential.

Quantitative data are presented as mean and SEM. Pairwise statisticalsignificance are determined with Student's two-tailed paired/unpairedt-tests, or Mann-Whitney Rank Sum tests, as appropriate. Multiplecomparisons are made using ANOVA followed by Tukey post-hoc analysis.Results are considered significant at P<0.05.

Measurement of Spontaneous Action Potential Firing of iPSC CorticalNeuron Clusters

Administration of Drugs During MEA Recordings:

Increasing concentrations of test compounds and vehicle are added to themedia of each well of a 96-well plate (6 wells per subject percondition, with one control and one Dravet subject per plate) containinghuman iPSC neurons following recordings of basal activity levels. Eachwell contains 8 electrodes for extracellular recordings of spontaneousaction potentials. Recordings are made for 5 minutes every 15 minutesover a 1-hour period, and are repeated every week over a 3 week periodduring weeks 5-7 of neuronal differentiation. All experiments areperformed in duplicate.

MEA Recordings

Control and Dravet Syndrome human iPSC-derived neurons are cultured onthe Axion 96-well MEA chips, which contain 8 electrodes per well. Platesare coated with fibronectin and seeded with neural progenitors at thedensity of 1.3×106 cells/ml. The extracellular electrical signalsdetected by the MEA system are amplified using the built-in Axionamplifier and sampling software, and the closed system maintains thecells at 37 degrees C. and allows for maintaining a 5% CO2 environmentfor prolonged recordings. Action potential analyses are performed usingNeuroExplorer software. Spike rates per well and per electrode, burstingrates, degree of synchronous discharges (i.e., occurring simultaneouslyat multiple electrodes) and local field potential morphology aredetermined.

Notwithstanding the appended claims, the disclosure set forth herein isalso defined by the following clauses:

Clause 1. A method of treating epilepsy or a neurological relateddisease, comprising administering to a patient in need thereof atherapeutically effective amount of a compound of formula (I):

wherein:

R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆ and R₇ are independently selected from hydrogen,halogen, X₁, X₂, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano,hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl,substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl,substituted heterocycle, or together with a second R¹-R⁷ group form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted wherein R₂ and R₅, R₂ and R₄, R₁ and R₅,R₆ and R₇, and/or R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl;

m is 0-4; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;

or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.

Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (II):

wherein:

R₁ is an alkyl, a substituted alkyl (e.g., CF₃) or SF₅;

R₂, R₃, R₄ and R₅ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen,alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl,heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substitutedheterocycle, where R₂ and R₅ or R₂ and R₄ are optionally cyclicallylinked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;

or a salt thereof.

Clause 3. The method of clause 1 or 2, wherein the compound is acompound having the formula (III):

wherein X₁-X₇ are each independently H, D or F, and R₁, R₃ and R₄ are asdefined in any of the embodiments of formula (I).

Clause 4. The method of clause 1 or 2, wherein the compound is acompound having the formula (IV):

wherein X₈-X₁₀ and each X are independently H, D or F, provided at leastone X₈-X₁₀ or X is F.

Clause 5. The method of clause 4, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving one of the following structures:

Clause 6. The method of any one of clauses 1, 2 and 4, wherein thecompound is a compound having one of the formulae (IVa)-(IVc):

wherein X₁₁, X₁₂ and each X is independently H, D or F; and

R₁₁-R₁₆ are each independently an alkyl or a substituted alkyl.

Clause 7. The method of clause 1, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (V):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₅, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above, p is 0, 1 or 2,and R₈ and R₉ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen, alkoxy,acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle,heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substituted heterocycle, or R₈and R₉ are cyclically linked to form a 5 or 6-membered cycloalkyl,heterocycle, aryl or heteroaryl ring, that is optionally furthersubstituted, where the dashed bond represents a single or doublecovalent bond.

Clause 8. The method of clause 7, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (VI):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₇, and m are as defined above, and p is 0, 1 or 2.

Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving one of the following structures:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 10. The method of clause 7, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving formula (VII):

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 12. The method of clause 1, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (VIII):

wherein R₁-R₄, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above.

Clause 13. The method of clause 12, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (IX):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₄, and each m are as defined above.

Clause 14. The method of clause 13, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 15. The method of clause 12, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (X):

wherein R₁-R₄, and each m are as defined above, and q is 0, 1 or 2.

Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving has the formula (XIa) or (XIb):

Clause 17. The method of clause 16, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 18. The method of clause 7, further comprising co-administeringto the subject an antiepileptic agent.

Clause 19. A method of suppressing appetite in a subject, comprisingadministering to the subject in need thereof an appetitesuppressing-amount of a compound of formula (I):

wherein:

R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆ and R₇ are independently selected from hydrogen,halogen, X₁, X₂, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano,hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl,substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl,substituted heterocycle, or together with a second R¹-R⁷ group form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted wherein R₂ and R₅, R₂ and R₄, R₁ and R₅,R₆ and R₇, and/or R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl;

m is 0-4; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;

or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.

Clause 20. The method of clause 19, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (II):

wherein:

R₁ is an alkyl, a substituted alkyl (e.g., CF₃) or SF₅;

R₂, R₃, R₄ and R₅ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen,alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy,substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl,heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substitutedheterocycle, where R₂ and R₅ or R₂ and R₄ are optionally cyclicallylinked;

X₁-X₅ are each independently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl; and

n is 1 or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged;

or a salt thereof.

Clause 21. The method of clause 19 or 20, wherein the compound is acompound having the formula (III):

wherein X₁-X₇ are each independently H, D or F, and R₁, R₃ and R₄ are asdefined in any of the embodiments of formula (I).

Clause 22. The method of clause 19 or 20, wherein the compound is acompound having the formula (IV):

wherein X₈-X₁₀ and each X are independently H, D or F, provided at leastone X₈-X₁₀ or X is F.

Clause 23. The method of clause 22, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving one of the following structures:

Clause 24. The method of any one of clauses 19, 20 and 22, wherein thecompound is a compound having one of the formulae (IVa)-(IVc):

wherein X₁₁, X₁₂ and each X is independently H, D or F; and

R₁₁-R₁₆ are each independently an alkyl or a substituted alkyl.

Clause 25. The method of clause 19, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (V):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₅, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above, p is 0, 1 or 2,and R₈ and R₉ are independently selected from hydrogen, halogen, alkoxy,acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substitutedalkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle,heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substituted heterocycle, or R₈and R₉ are cyclically linked to form a 5 or 6-membered cycloalkyl,heterocycle, aryl or heteroaryl ring, that is optionally furthersubstituted, where the dashed bond represents a single or doublecovalent bond.

Clause 26. The method of clause 25, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (VI):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₇, and m are as defined above, and p is 0, 1 or 2.

Clause 27. The method of clause 25, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving one of the following structures:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 28. The method of clause 27, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving formula (VII):

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 29. The method of clause 28, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 30. The method of clause 19, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (VIII):

wherein R₁-R₄, R₆, R₇ and m are as defined above.

Clause 31. The method of clause 30, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (IX):

wherein R₁, R₃, R₄, and each m are as defined above.

Clause 32. The method of clause 31, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

Clause 33. The method of clause 30, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving the formula (X):

wherein R₁-R₄, and each m are as defined above, and q is 0, 1 or 2.

Clause 34. The method of clause 33, wherein the compound is a compoundhaving has the formula (XIa) or (XIb):

Clause 35. The method of clause 34, wherein the compound has thestructure:

or a prodrug thereof, or a stereoisomer thereof, or a salt thereof.

The preceding merely illustrates the principles of the invention. Itwill be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devisevarious arrangements which, although not explicitly described or shownherein, embody the principles of the invention and are included withinits spirit and scope. Furthermore, all examples and conditional languagerecited herein are principally intended to aid the reader inunderstanding the principles of the invention and the conceptscontributed by the inventors to furthering the art, and are to beconstrued as being without limitation to such specifically recitedexamples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein recitingprinciples, aspects, and embodiments of the invention as well asspecific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural andfunctional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that suchequivalents include both currently known equivalents and equivalentsdeveloped in the future, i.e., any elements developed that perform thesame function, regardless of structure. The scope of the presentinvention, therefore, is not intended to be limited to the exemplaryembodiments shown and described herein. Rather, the scope and spirit ofpresent invention is embodied by the appended claims.

That which is claimed is:
 1. A metabolism-resistant fenfluramine analogcompound of formula (II):

wherein: R₁ is CF₃ or SF₅; R₂, R₃, R₄, and R₅ are independently selectedfrom hydrogen, halogen, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano,hydroxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substitutedaryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substitutedheterocycle, wherein R₂ and R₅ or R₂ and R₄ are optionally cyclicallylinked together to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an arylring or a heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted; X₁-X₅ are eachindependently H, D, F, an alkyl or a substituted alkyl; and n is 1 or 2,wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged; or a saltthereof.
 2. The compound of claim 1, having the formula (III):

wherein X₆-X₇ are each independently H, D or F.
 3. The compound of claim1, having the formula (IV):

wherein X₈-X₁₀ and each X is independently H, D or F, provided at leastone X₈-X₁₀ or X is F.
 4. The compound of claim 1, having one of thefollowing structures:


5. The compound of claim 1, having one of formulae (IVa)-(IVc):

wherein each X are each independently H, D or F; and R₁₁-R₁₆ are eachindependently an alkyl or a substituted alkyl.
 6. A pharmaceuticalcomposition, comprising a therapeutically effective amount of a compoundhaving the formula (I):

wherein: R₁ is CF₃ or SF₅; R₂, R₃, R₄ and R₅ are independently selectedfrom hydrogen, halogen, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy, cyano,hydroxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substitutedaryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl and substitutedheterocycle, where R₂ and R₅ or R₂ and R₄ are optionally cyclicallylinked together to form a cycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an arylring or a heteroaryl ring that is optionally substituted; X₁-X₅ are eachindependently H, D, F an alkyl or a substituted alkyl; and n is 1 or 2,wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged; or apharmaceutically salt thereof
 7. A method of treating epilepsy or aneurological related disease, comprising administering to a patient inneed thereof a therapeutically effective amount of ametabolism-resistant fenfluramine analog of formula (I):

wherein: R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆ and R₇ are independently selected fromhydrogen, halogen, X₁, X₂, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy,cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl,aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl,substituted heterocycle, or together with a second R¹-R⁷ group form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted wherein R₂ and R₅, R₂ and R₄, R₁ and R₅,R₆ and R₇, and/or R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linked; X₁-X₅ are eachindependently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl; m is 0-4; and n is 1or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged; or apharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.
 8. The method of claim 7,wherein the compound is a compound according to one of claims 1-5. 9.The method of claim 7, further comprising co-administering to thesubject an antiepileptic agent.
 10. A method of suppressing appetite ina subject, comprising administering to the subject in need thereof anappetite suppressing-amount of a compound of formula (I):

wherein: R₁, R₂, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆ and R₇ are independently selected fromhydrogen, halogen, X₁, X₂, alkoxy, acyl, substituted acyl, carboxy,cyano, hydroxy, alkoxy, substituted alkoxy, alkyl, substituted alkyl,aryl, substituted aryl, heterocycle, heteroaryl, substituted heteroaryl,substituted heterocycle, or together with a second R¹-R⁷ group form acycloalkyl ring, a heterocycle ring, an aryl ring or a heteroaryl ringthat is optionally substituted wherein R₂ and R₅, R₂ and R₄, R₁ and R₅,R₆ and R₇, and/or R₃ and R₆ are cyclically linked; X₁-X₅ are eachindependently H, D, F, alkyl or substituted alkyl; m is 0-4; and n is 1or 2, wherein when n is 2 the nitrogen is positively charged; or apharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.
 11. The method of claim 10,wherein the compound is a compound according to one of claims 1-5.